Firefly Coffee House

Such an amazing atmosphere in this cute café. Extremely close to the beach and very comfortable! :) they serve the best bagels I’ve ever had and the best earl grey tea with steamed milk I’ve ever had! Highly highly recommend

The coffee cake has been replaced by espresso brownies, a great call.
Still one of the most mellow coffee experiences in Santa Cruz.

I agree with others on Unilocal that the bagels are really good but I disagree with the coffee I’ve been to many cities had a lot of coffee an while this isn’t the worse it’s not very good no froth to strong not enough vanilla I poured it out but I did love the bagels I’d go back just for that the service was excellent very friendly the spot is small not much room to sit so even with wifi chance of getting a seat is limited

Been here three times. Never a fourth… coffee barista clearly gets no Support… Bitter, hot… bad taste coffee.
There are good coffee shops in Santa Cruz… Don’t go here…

Poor review coming,
The staff were great, no complaints.
The coffee is mediocre at best, the machine could probably use a tune up at least.
The bagels are not bagels but white bread in the shape of a bagel, they are great for sandwiches but it’s not a lox and cream cheese kind of bagel.
I smelled cleaning chemicals the entire time I was at my table, not what I want first thing in the morning. They could have been organic cleaners but smelled terrible none the less.
The demographic is in good part spoiled and loud kids telling their parents what to do.
I’m confused on 5 star reviews for this place and anyone who says eat and drink local while indulging in coffee and flour based pastries does not know what the word local means.

Cute, quaint neighborhood café. Has that «cheers» feel. Prices are great and the staff is super nice. Not the greatest latte I’ve ever had, but for sure a great cup of coffee. I haven’t tried the goodies yet, but they seem to fly out of there! I will always support this sweet little gem:)

Good tasting coffee, but understaffed so the queue was very long. They also didn’t have any 12oz takeaway cups which for some reason meant they couldn’t make 12oz drinks, and didn’t have any lids for the 8oz cups. Hopefully this is just a symptom of holiday period staffing/​management issues.

Incredible bagels! I came visiting for the first time. I had the jalapeño with cream cheese and avocado. So delicious. Also bought 2 other bagels to bring it home. Will visit again.

You’re in Santa Cruz and want to get coffee/​pastries at a yummy homey place that is pure Santa Cruz? Go here!
I had a great double cappuccino and a warm, fresh-​baked cheddar bagel. Yeah, it’s a bit fluffy, but hey we’re not in NY, right?
To me, Santa Cruz screams eat/​drink/​shop local… so start your day here.

This review is for their amazing CHAI TEA!!! This has to be the best chai tea i’ve ever had. They use loose leaf chai and drip brew it over some sweetened soy milk – almond milk is available upon request, but OMGGG this makes for the best combination of creamy, sweet and spicy.

Great coffee spot with fresh organic coffee and homemade bagels. The breakfast bagels are hands down one of the best I’ve had. The bagels are fluffy and the flavor is incredible. I had the jalapeño cheddar and my girl had a tomato herb. Quite location just outside of downtown Santa Cruz. Perfect place for breakfast

This coffee shop is one of my favs in Santa Cruz, and as a long time resident, I know them all.
First of all, I’m not a coffee drinker… tea please! Especially if it’s good chai. And they have excellent chai here. It’s got an orange flavor overlaying the mild spice flavor and they always brew it by order. I find many of the pre-​made chais out there to be sickly sweet, not theirs.
They also make really good bagels in house — yum!
I really like coming here during the day. There are more windows than your average café. On a sunny day the lighting is great, and there is porch seating if you want to be outside.
What I don’t like, their seats are uncomfortable — pretty much all of them – that’s a problem in a café, imho.
And the outdoor seating is adjacent to the parking lot which lacks ambiance, although the porch can still feel cozy.
That said, it’s still one of my favorites. So why only 4 stars? I only give out fives sparingly.

I got a Chai latte which was mediocre. The boyfriend had a latte which was average. I also had a bagel — it was fine but they were out of the jalapeño bagel so I just had a plain version. The girls working offered to cut up some jalapenos and put it in with the cream cheese which was very sweet and improved the bagel.
We sat outside which was very refreshing after a day of walking around. Seems to be a cozy little spot. We were also both able to work a bit though the larger tables were taken so we were a bit squashed. Wifi worked and there were plenty of outlets.

Bagels are phenomenal! Highly recommend the cheesy tomato bagel. I worked from my lap top here pretty much all day. Friendly staff and comforting, home-​like ambiance. If you plan on working here I highly recommend coming after 12:00 pm. It was very loud prior to that which makes sense because the morning is obviously the busiest time for coffee. It really quieted down after noon. There was only one other person in the shop during the down time which I loved. Quiet and relaxing!

Drink (Almond Milk Latte): 2
Food: 4
Service: 3
Atmosphere: Wholesome, eclectic, interesting
Almost every one that walked in while I was waiting for my latte and breakfast bagel, knew each other by first name. This is like the good ol’ neighborhood coffee shop.
Would I stop in if I was in a hurry?
No!
Would I stop in for their daily fresh made bagels or pastries again?
Omfg! Absolutely. They were super relaxed and willing to make a custom breakfast sandwich for me which consisted of the Tomato Herb Bagel, egg, black bean hash and avocado slices. The bagel was the best part. Most of them had cheese fused in them, so Tomato Herb was one of the few without.
How was the coffee? Meh… They seemed to be a little disorganized in regards to the flow of customers which led to a semi-​careless and bitter latte… that felt like it took a very long time for her to make… I almost got my bagel before the latte and that took maybe 15 – 20 mins based on all the customers before me. When I mentioned the poor taste of the latte, she didn’t offer to make another one, which I found kind of rude…
While waiting to order up at the counter in line, the sun was a blazing through their curtain-​less bright clear glass. She apologized to me and said that it’s only like that for an hour or two during the morning. My sunglasses were in the car. and I felt like… I was enduring an obstacle course– which made me hopeful for better than usual outcomes based on the Unilocal ratings. You know the saying, «nothing good comes easy»? Well I was working hard to not leave…
The long wait, the lackluster coffee and the discomfort while ordering and waiting in line made for an unpleasant experience. Luckily the bagel was so delicious I still managed to leave with a smile.

friendly staff as far as I know. Cozy, professional, pleasant and more. Outside seating which is good and
inside seating also of course. The prices are current to what other coffee shops charge

Best small feel coffee shop in Santa Cruz that I have been to yet. Tight knit with a great staff.
Fresh baked bagels!
Try a jalapeño cheddar bagel, if you wanna step it up a notch fill it with your favorite ingredients, I got mine with egg and sausage.

Why can’t all bagels be like this!
Heads up it is in a tiny strip mall so you may pass by your first time but so worth it.

Coffee was good but the main attraction is definitely the homemade bagels and the various sandwiches and creations they make with them. We split the onion and cheese and the regular cheese bagel with cream cheese, all wonderful. Also the «French toast» style bagel w a cinnamon and sugar bagel – really really tasty. Look, this isn’t New York but I gotta say that this place made me think that good bagels in Calif are actually possible.
The place has a hippy kind of vibe but not the pretentious hippiness of some of the other places in town, laid back, they seem to have regulars (in addition to newbies like us).
Get here if you can!

Ordered the Crick’s Cream, way too creamy and not a smooth creamy. It was very thick. I wish it was a bit less, but I enjoyed my boyfriends drink which had irish cream and hazelnut in it.
Cute little coffee shop in Santa Cruz. I wanted to try their pastries but since we came later in the afternoon there wasn’t much left.